When you write copy for a website, a landing page, a brochure, a banner, an email, or any other marketing or sales material, this is a great piece of advice.
Except, you should actually ask that question at word level: what is this word supposed to do?
Words take up precious space on screens, and the ones you are going to pick need to have the potential to change the right people. This is probably the reason why your marketing material is not effective.
Four ways companies can decide to (automatically) answer an application for an open position.
#1
*crickets chirp*
#2
Hi, we have received your application. Best Regards.
#3
Hi *candidate name*,
Thank you for your interest in *company name*! We wanted to let you know we received your application for *open position*, and we are delighted that you would consider joining us. We’ll be in touch again once we have processed your application.Best Regards.
#4
Hi *candidate name*,
Thank you for your interest in our *open position*!
It’s getting close to saying our goodbyes to 2020 and welcoming a fresh new year! This marks the start of a Holiday season with our team as well, as all our operations quiet down for a couple of weeks – until we’re back on January 4th.
We’d like to take this chance to thank you for your patience with our team taking the time to rest and spend time with our families, and to wish you joyous and love-filled Holidays and a wonderful New Year!
*Animated GIF – Happy Holidays*
See you in 2021! 🥳
Two questions.
And perhaps a third one. Does it matter?
I believe it does. Even when it is about a simple, automated communication with somebody you might not hear about anymore.
The way you communicate is a choice. And it speaks volume to who you are.
When you are sending a message to the mass, the tendency is to make it as all-encompassing as possible, and by doing that you probably fail to make it relatable, motivating, effective.
A great example is what happens every year when companies share season’s greetings with their audience. And as it is possible to send a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year (accompanied by the emoticons of your choice) to a vast number of people, individuals got lazy as well.
Next year, instead of sending a mass message to all your team, your group of friends, your family, pick a finite number of people that had a significant impact on your life in the past twelve months, and share a personal and emotional message with them. Tell them why this Merry Christmas is different. Tell them what they mean to you. Tell them how they have succeded in their job. And let them know why you want them close in the New Year as well.
The return on this small investment will be huge.
Kindness starts from understanding that we are not alone.
That despite our uniqueness, the pain we feel, the challenges we face, the preoccupations that keep our mind busy are common.
That what we are going through is the reflection of what our neighbour has lived for the past six months.
That the person who does not reply to our message is not having a better day.
That it is difficult for our partner to figure us out, just as it is difficult for us to figure them out.
Kindness is an act directed at ourselves first.
Kindness is for every day of the year.
Merry Christmas!
P.S.: I have not read many books this year, but one I enjoyed is Storynomics, by Robert McKee and Thomas Gerace. I am giving away 5 Kindle copies of the book, to the first 5 people who leave a comment to this post and share one thing they got from my blog.
Every single company is on a mission to talk about value. Value proposition, value selling, value chain, added value. And (almost) every single company fails to appreciate what value is.
That’s because value is defined not by your management, but by your customers. It is not about increased productivity or improved workforce efficiency, but it’s about what you enable your customers to do day after day (to increase productivity and improve workforce efficiency).
It is one of the most difficult lessons to understand and put in practice. It is the only way to find a unique and consistent way to talk about value across people, deparment, and stakeholders. It is the alignment you are missing.
It is worth it.
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